, attached to 2019-06-30

Review by Juliusismypetcat

Juliusismypetcat What can I say that hasn't already been said about this show, besides for adding in my own personal takes on it?

This was one of those DAYS (not just SHOWS) that I chase in my dreams all the time. My two buddies and I made our way through Philly from the hotel and grabbed a pre-show drink at a bar in center city (this is important later). We met a guy from NY who said he was planning to leave at set break because of work the next day. "Hey, seeing half a show is better than not seeing it at all right?".....yeah....right.

We meet up with old and new friends on lot and the weather is spectacular for this time of year. The vibe is just "on". We all keep whispering about this, but nobody wants to jinx the whole thing by saying what we were all thinking: It just FEELS right. Sometimes, when you surrender to the flow, it all goes accordingly. We hear rumors about what was sound checked, and my buddies know I'm hoping for that Camel Walk.

When The Curtain opens up, I will forever remember my buddy (who has far more shows under his belt) turning to me in the summer sun and saying, "Just relax man, they're taking us in for a nice little Sunday Show". What a genius. FEFY was perfectly placed and the Buried Alive keeps that flavor of "Good Ole Phish". THEN....we all get to strut our stuff to a nice little Camel Walk. At this point everyone is all-in...but what's that you say? REBA!

Reba is Reba of course, but, still wanting some "Good ole Phish", the opening notes of Sample play right into my heart. I highly suggest checking the solo on this Sample, even if it doesn't go "deep". Hearing Pebbles and Marbles, I turn to my friend (who is at his 2nd show) and mumble, "Dude this is special right now." I NEVER thought I'd catch this one!

Tela (which had been sound checked, but I thought they were saving it for SPAC) was as gorgeous as ever. The sun setting in the background and the breeze truly resonated with me as "Wind from beyond the mountains."

I should note here that I was fully satisfied with the set already, when Mango hits. A nice little version to keep the energy up, but what really stood out to me this set was the Driver, again, a song I never thought I'd hear live. This one brought me to tears and just hit the feels in all the right places.

Next up, is it gonna be Maze? Damn it, "just" Bowie!!! To this listener's ears, this was nice and tight, still bringing the thunder. Set break? Cool, we just got my favorite set out of the three nights of Camden so far. I turn and say, "They can play whatever second set, and I'm fully satisfied." Guess that guy from NY earlier wasn't so crazy for leaving?

BOOM

The opening half hour or so that is Mr. Completely and TYL all blend together for me as a gelatinous dance party. Nobody was talking, just exchanging those knowing glances that, "Hey, this is GOOD right?"

I know TYL is getting all the props from this show, but for my tastes, I personally liked the Mr. Completely a little more. The riffs at the end were so spicy, and upon re-listen, the soundboards really don't do it justice.

After coming down out of the cosmos for the first time in 30+ minutes we get a spectacularly place BBFCFM! The placement of this song at this point in the set cannot be overstated. It really broke up the tension and reminded us all about how not to take it too seriously, then BAM we all get to step into the Freezer. This Tweezer is short, but there about 3 peaks as I recall. Don't be fooled by the length! At this point, I was ok with going home a satisfied customer, so when the groans for Shade came round, I was totally ok with it. MEAP was phenomenal, and again, I cannot over emphasize the flow of this second set.

A pause: My buddy HATES Makisupa. For the rest of my crew who know this, it was like one big inside joke that the band was in on as they let that one fly. I couldn't have had a bigger smile on my face. He was rewarded by waiting through that one though with his own favorite, CDT which scorches what's left of that Camden lawn.

Another pause: One guy in our crew had left the 2018 Camden N2 early due to work obligations and the only song he'd wanted to hear was Suzy, which they encored with that night. He got his due when they closed down the 2nd set with a standard, if not "sing me home boys" version here.

Are we gonna get a tweeprise or what? Who cares! PYITE for the encore? Bring it the hell on!

The first few notes of WTU indicate to me that we might get a three song finale (you could hear a pin drop during the quiet part), and when Julius hits (my little furry buddy at home's namesake) the place goes bananas. Alas, no tweeprise, but again nobody cares. We all knew that the perfect Sunday afternoon with friends was just had by all.


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